Dispensing apparatus.



L. W. LUELLEN. DISPBNSING APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED NOV.18, 1914.

Patented Ma119, 1915.

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],JISZPENSING APPARATUS.

peiilcation of Letters Patent.

patenten nar.. e, iam.

Original application filed. March ai, 1911, serial-No. 616,714. Divided and this application tiled November l ATo all whom it may concern Be it known that l, LAWRENCE W. Lunn- LEN, a citizen ofythe United States, residing at Mountain Lakes, county of Morris, State of New Jersey,-have invented-'certain new I and 'useful improvements in Dispensing Apparatus, of 'which the following, taken in connection with the accompanyingsheets of drawing,'is a full, clear, and concise@ description. i

My present invention relates to dispensing apparatus and comprehends a construc- *tion which is particularly adapted for conl I cups, the apparatus is made so as to support such cups in stacked, or nested relation, in

upright position within a dust-proof coverf ing, .wliich will protect or shield' from contamination those portions of the cup in-v tended to receive the contents, and for the engagement of the mouth of the user, `and in such `a manner as will permitthe withdrawal or removal of the lowermost ter minabcup independentpf the next succeeding cup. 'lhus the entire stack of cups are A eoV anden that the cup will be yieidably supkept in sanitary condition and may be withdrawn one by one .from the vapparatus as use @are :truste-conical in form and are preferably, but not necessarily, provided with out- :re uires. t

neof the rinclpalobgects of my pres ent invention -isr'to make the cup reservoir .independentof and removable from the cup'- supp'orting means.

lin carrying out my invention it is ini ported in the dust proof covering or cup reservpir. The yieldability may be either in thecup itself or in the device which engages it, or both thecup and the engaging fdevice may be yieldable. `lieldability of the support or cup or both will be present and the cup, will lbe removed without vdistortion or damage.

llhis present application is a division of a certain application heretofore-filed by me under date of March 24, 1911, Serial No. tiene;

Referring to the accompanying drawings y in which l have illustrated by way of en ample certain preferable specidc emb'odiu ments of my invention (but Iwithout intending to limit myself to such specic embodiments) and in' which alike reference nu- 1a, 191i. semina. 872,677. 'i

merals indicate like parts throughout the several views, I will proceed to describe the samein detail.

Figure 1 illustrates, partly in elevation and partly in section, one practicable embodiment of my invention. Fig. 2 is a horizontal section taken on aplane indicated by the lines 2-2 in Fig. 1 looking upwardly.

Figz 3 is an enlarged elevation, partly in section, of a modified form of the same invention; and Fig. 4: is a top plan view of thel dispensing apparatus illustrated in Fig. 3, the cup reservoir and cups being removed to illustrate more clearly the construction of the cup-retaining means.

lndetail, 1 indicates a suitable support illustrated as taking the form or embodiment of a portable stand which may be fastened to a table, shelf or the like.

2 indicates the `base of a bracket which may be suitably secured to the support 1 or .fastened directly to a wall, if desired. This bracket is provided with an annular collar 3 and an inwardly-extending flange 4. Upon the flange 4 is an apertured `annular cupsupporting ring 5 made of yieldable material, preferably rubber. Resting upon thisV rubber ring 5 is the removable cup reservoir 6,'preferably made of glass and normally closed at the top. rlfhe cups indicated at I wardly-extcnding rims or flanges 8. When the cups are nested the flanges of thecups will be spaced apart so that these will engage individually the supporting device. The relative proportions of the apertured supporting ring 5 and the flange 8 of the paper cup are such that the flange of the cup will rest upon and be supported by the rubber ring 5 in delivery position. The opening in the flange 4 is shown of a sufficient diameter topermit the iiange of the cup freely to pass 'through it, but the opening in the rubber Gasket or ring is shown of a smaller diameter. When a yielding rubber ring' 5'is'- used, it will afford an elastically-yieldable "support for the bottom cup of the pile, which support will yield upon the lowerrnost cu of of the` 'tia-nge of the cup, and assume a position where it will engage the next cup in the pile. .The elasticity or yieldability of the gasket may be determined, not only by the inherent characteristics of the material oi which'it is made, the relative thickness, etc., but also by the relative diameters of the openings in the gasket and in v the iange 4. By increasing the diameter of the flange 4 relatively to the diameter oi'. the gasket, more yieldability will be present in the gasket, and, conversely, .by decreasing the diameter of the iiaiige 4 relatively to the diameter of the gasket opening, ythe yieldability of the gasket will be constricted.

In some instances it may be desirable to `increase the iexibility, as it were, off/ the elastic gasket, in which instance the cups maybe supported by a series of elastic yield` able fingers. In Figs. 3 and 4 such adevice is illustrated wherein the .reservoir 6 is shown supportedby a ring 3 providedy with an 1n- Wardly-directed -iange 4, the ring being supported by an attaching device 9, which is slidable upon a-standard 10 and may be secured in desiredposition of adjustment by means of a set screw 11.l The -lower end of the reservoir 6 has interposed between it an'd the flange 4 an elastic gasket 5 provided with a series of lingers 1'2 and 13. The seriesof fingers 12 project inwardly farther than do the lingers 13. This is for the purpose of giving an increased gripping action upon the cups 7 which cups, 1n this modified forni of device, are shown to be unflanged. By this means, as the cup assumes its normal position in the holder, and as it is drawn out, it will be gripped at two zones, one vzione being gripped by the ingers12,and the vother zone by the fingers 13. j f,

It. will be observed that the-removable glass Ireservoir and supportingbracket aiio'rd a dust-excluding inclosurev for the contained cups, and the reservoir may beconveniently` removed from the bracket for the `replenishment of the device'with paper cups.` This removable feature Vofmy invention isv important, and particularly sofwhen the glass reservoir is permanentlyy closed atthe top;

In eachinstancethe aperture ofthe cupsustaining or supportingfmeans' (whether it be either of the rubber rings 5 of Figs. 1 or 2) is of lessdiameterfinpartfor in whole,

than thefgreatest diameter of the-cupsjso that the cups may be supported within the 'cup reservoir with the' terminal cupy of .the

stack, as well as sever'alsuperposed cups projecting rom'and beneath the supporting bracket to be conveniently grasped individually by the hand ofthe user. The lowermost cup constitutes a closure for the delivery-orifice ofl the container, and `the rims of all the cups as well as their interior are maintainedin strictv sanitary condition.

l To store and dispense uniianged cups it is onlyneoessary' to relatively proportion the supporting. bracket, glass reservoir and sustainingring 'or projections, as shownin Fig.

. cups successively near their greatest diamethan the ymaximum diameter of the cups 2. During the withdrawal of an unianged cup, the wall of the cup will be caused to slightly yield or give when passing the supporting means. This, however,1 will not injure the cup owing to its flexible quality.

-Sucli changes in'proportion to meet particular requirements, I consider to be well within the scope of, my invention as defined by the appended claims. I also wish it to be understood that while I have illustratedjlone useful application of my `invention in several forms, in connection with paper' drinking cups, my invention may, to equal advantage,be used in connection with the storage and dispensing of other articles.

Having thus described my invention, what Ielaimisznl f 1. In a cup-dispensing'apparatus, the combination with a `bracket provided'with cirmeans, said cup-supporting means being adapted to engage the cup to be dispensed 'at a zone near its greatest diameter and support same in delivery position, a removable* supportingmeans, said reservoir having an internal diameter greater than the maximum .diameter of the cup to be dispensed.

2. In a cup-dispensing device, the combination of a supporting delivery member provided with a delivery opening and supporting means for a stack of nested cups, said supporting means adapted to engage the ter whenbeing withdrawn, and acup reservoir removably'supported by the delivery member, having an internal diameter greater 3. rIn a cup-dispensing device, the combination with a' y circular delivery member provided with means for securing it in upright position and a circular delivery aperture through which the bottom of a pile of nested cups may normally project, of a vertically-disposed cup'reservoir consisting of a glass' tube of larger diameter than the greatest diameter'of the cups and normally closed at the top, said reservoir being removable from and supported by said delivery member; and internally-projecting means adapted to engage the cups successively near their greatestdiameter and to normally retain 'them with the' bottom of the pile proj ecting downward through the delivery aper'ture and permit their Withdrawal one by one by grasping the exposed portion of the bottom cup.k j

4. Ina cup-dispensing device, the combi- Het nation with an annular dispensing member having a supporting bracket and provided with a delivery aperture and a verticallyprojecting annular flange, of a cup reservoir ada ted to contain a' pile of nested cups and consisting of .a vertically-arranged glass 1 c' figg,

ii', may loo grasped molly ronxoval ther@ from.

witness wher-ooi l havo lmreunto set my hand in the lLmresemce of two subscribing wtmesses,

LAVR'ENCE W. LUELLEN. l/Vtnesses WM., C. DUNN, l). F. SONNEK. 

